By Heather B. Hayes SS It's hard to walk away from a lucrative opportu- nity, but officials at Hayes, Seay, Mattern & Mattern HSMM , an architectural and engineering firm in Roanoke, Va., were prepared to do just that when they finally got a look at an owner-generated contract governing an eagerly anticipated transportation project. I just about fell out of my chair, recalls James Lowe, vice president and general counsel at HSMM. avoid costly litigation I don't know that I'd ever seen one quite this bad. January l February 2005 ENGINEERING INC. 2 1